Published: Friday, January 17, 2014 at 4:30 a.m.

Last Modified: Thursday, January 16, 2014 at 6:15 p.m.

A widening project along Upward Road is 95 percent complete and scheduled to wrap up this spring, a N.C. Department of Transportation official told county commissioners Wednesday.

“Upward Road is on track to be completed by May of this year,” District Engineer Steve Cannon told commissioners during their annual budget planning meeting.

Although there are some concrete islands awaiting installation, the majority of the remaining work is surfacing and marking, Cannon said. That requires crews to wait until the weather is warm enough for asphalt work.

“They won't be able to start back up until mid-March, because of the temperatures,” Cannon said, adding the ideal temperature is 50 degrees. “What happens is, if you put asphalt down when it's too cold, you don't get proper compaction — it's a durability issue.”

Cannon said it appears the 2.7-mile widening project will come in very close to its $23.8 million budget. Currently, the project sits at $22.7 million. Some modifications are planned at turnaround locations, “but I don't think they'll affect the budget much,” he said.

Contractor Blythe Development Co. of Charlotte started work on the widening — turning two lanes into a four-lane divided highway from US-176 to Howard Gap Road — in May 2010. It was supposed to take through August 2013, but was plagued by weather and utility delays.

The project entailed relocating numerous utilities such as water, sewer, natural gas, electric, telephone and cable. That, combined with heavy precipitation and some “redesigns,” pushed back the expected completion by about nine months, Cannon said.

May can't come soon enough for many businesses along Upward Road, whose owners say construction has deterred all but the most faithful and dogged of their customers. Even after construction is over, they anticipate business won't fully return until drivers get used to a new series of turn lanes and reroutes.

“It's definitely hurt business,” said Matt Jones, who co-owns Rex's Indoor Range with his brother. “There have been times when we've been blocked and customers couldn't even turn in. And it's been hard, trying to find an entrance. It would be great for it to be done.”

Jeanie Honeycutt, co-owner of Pizza Inn, said business during the widening “is the slowest I've seen it in 10 years. It's made a big difference.”

Honeycutt said the restaurant she and Chris Miller bought four years ago is fortunate to have a number of locals who are determined to eat there. “But as far as people off the interstate, they kind of avoid it. And locals have told us they'll be glad when road construction will be finished,” she said.

About a month ago, contractors accidently severed a water line to Pizza Inn, “so we were actually closed for a whole day because we didn't have water,” Honeycutt said. She said the restaurant regularly had to coach customers how to get into their parking lot due to construction.

“I literally had customers calling from their cell phones saying, 'How do I get in there?'” she said. But Honeycutt said she thinks all the lost business and hassles will “be worth it when everything is done.”

Until last fall, when a new side lot was installed, the widening project wiped out all but two spaces in front of Signature Signs, said graphic artist Corinn Pope. Nearly two years of limited parking was a big deterrent for many shoppers, she added.

“We have a pretty faithful customer base locally, but who knows what effect it had on new customers, with the anxiety of navigating through all that mess,” Pope said. “We had a lot of people not knowing where to pull in, passing us.”

Glover McMurray, owner of Hilltop Auto Repair, said construction hasn't hurt his business at all. He said Blythe did the best they could, given heavy rains and delays from Duke Power and AT&T in relocating their utilities.

“I think those guys deserve the utmost praise because of the issues they've had to work around to pacify the travelers,” McMurray said.

<p>A widening project along Upward Road is 95 percent complete and scheduled to wrap up this spring, a N.C. Department of Transportation official told county commissioners Wednesday.</p><p>“Upward Road is on track to be completed by May of this year,” District Engineer Steve Cannon told commissioners during their annual budget planning meeting.</p><p>Although there are some concrete islands awaiting installation, the majority of the remaining work is surfacing and marking, Cannon said. That requires crews to wait until the weather is warm enough for asphalt work.</p><p>“They won't be able to start back up until mid-March, because of the temperatures,” Cannon said, adding the ideal temperature is 50 degrees. “What happens is, if you put asphalt down when it's too cold, you don't get proper compaction — it's a durability issue.”</p><p>Cannon said it appears the 2.7-mile widening project will come in very close to its $23.8 million budget. Currently, the project sits at $22.7 million. Some modifications are planned at turnaround locations, “but I don't think they'll affect the budget much,” he said.</p><p>Contractor Blythe Development Co. of Charlotte started work on the widening — turning two lanes into a four-lane divided highway from US-176 to Howard Gap Road — in May 2010. It was supposed to take through August 2013, but was plagued by weather and utility delays.</p><p>The project entailed relocating numerous utilities such as water, sewer, natural gas, electric, telephone and cable. That, combined with heavy precipitation and some “redesigns,” pushed back the expected completion by about nine months, Cannon said. </p><p>May can't come soon enough for many businesses along Upward Road, whose owners say construction has deterred all but the most faithful and dogged of their customers. Even after construction is over, they anticipate business won't fully return until drivers get used to a new series of turn lanes and reroutes.</p><p>“It's definitely hurt business,” said Matt Jones, who co-owns Rex's Indoor Range with his brother. “There have been times when we've been blocked and customers couldn't even turn in. And it's been hard, trying to find an entrance. It would be great for it to be done.”</p><p>Jeanie Honeycutt, co-owner of Pizza Inn, said business during the widening “is the slowest I've seen it in 10 years. It's made a big difference.”</p><p>Honeycutt said the restaurant she and Chris Miller bought four years ago is fortunate to have a number of locals who are determined to eat there. “But as far as people off the interstate, they kind of avoid it. And locals have told us they'll be glad when road construction will be finished,” she said. </p><p>About a month ago, contractors accidently severed a water line to Pizza Inn, “so we were actually closed for a whole day because we didn't have water,” Honeycutt said. She said the restaurant regularly had to coach customers how to get into their parking lot due to construction.</p><p>“I literally had customers calling from their cell phones saying, 'How do I get in there?'” she said. But Honeycutt said she thinks all the lost business and hassles will “be worth it when everything is done.”</p><p>Until last fall, when a new side lot was installed, the widening project wiped out all but two spaces in front of Signature Signs, said graphic artist Corinn Pope. Nearly two years of limited parking was a big deterrent for many shoppers, she added.</p><p>“We have a pretty faithful customer base locally, but who knows what effect it had on new customers, with the anxiety of navigating through all that mess,” Pope said. “We had a lot of people not knowing where to pull in, passing us.”</p><p>Glover McMurray, owner of Hilltop Auto Repair, said construction hasn't hurt his business at all. He said Blythe did the best they could, given heavy rains and delays from Duke Power and AT&T in relocating their utilities.</p><p>“I think those guys deserve the utmost praise because of the issues they've had to work around to pacify the travelers,” McMurray said. </p><p>Reach Axtell at 828-694-7860 or than.axtell@blueridgenow.com.</p>